


An Invitation

by TheLodgersEnthusiast (Morgan_Molliniere)



Series: The Society of Weird Feelings [16]
Category: The Glass Scientists (Webcomic)
Genre: Fancy dinners, M/M, also being honest and not being honest at the same time, but not necessarily the same ones, characters based on the ones from The Invisible Man (1933)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-02-23 06:21:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23573749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morgan_Molliniere/pseuds/TheLodgersEnthusiast
Summary: Griffin is invited to a dinner, and brings Archer with him. Things don't quite go as expected.
Relationships: Mr. Archer/Mr. Griffin (The Glass Scientists), Mr. Griffin (The Glass Scientists) & Original Character(s)
Series: The Society of Weird Feelings [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/824595
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	1. On The Way To The Dinner

**Author's Note:**

> A Lodger fic? In this economy???
> 
> Idk, I just thought that the fandom was in dire need of one.
> 
> Yes, I'll finish my other fanfictions. I'll get on that soon.

“Hey, Jack.”

Griffin didn't look up as he flipped through the pages of a book. The only indication he gave that he was listening at all was a grunt. But Archer wasn't going to let that deter him. He took a seat beside Griffin, and leaned his chin onto his shoulder.

“Jack.”

Griffin finally glanced over at him. “What?”

“Aren't you going to tell me something?” Archer asked, blinking at him.

“Tell you what?”

“Don't play dumb, all of us saw it,” he said. “You received something in the mail.” He put his head on his shoulder. “You _never_ get things in the mail.”

“I was going to tell you, but not in the common room, where everyone can hear you and I,” Griffin said, in a deadpan manner. He turned over to Archer, and sighed. “Do you really want me to tell you here?”

“Well, you consider it enough of a secret to want to keep it secret,” Archer said, lifting his head from Griffin's shoulder. “I'll respect that.”

“If you're going to kiss me, do it when I tell you about the letter,” Griffin said, smiling a little. Archer only laughed, and told him, “Will do.”

“You received a letter, it seems,” someone said from behind them. Griffin and Archer turned towards the source of the voice; it was Bryson.

“What of it?” Griffin asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Could your letter be from a certain Miss Cranley?”

Archer looked at Griffin again. “Miss Cranley? As-as in your childhood friend?”

“Childhood friend, hm?” Bryson said. “No wonder a certain someone was asking me if I knew you.”

Griffin looked at the two of them. “...You really had to go and say it, huh?” he asked. Then he turned his attention to Bryson. “How do _you_ know her?”

“I don't, but a friend of mine does,” Bryson told him. “He asked me for her if I knew you, and I told him you resided at the Society for Arcane Sciences.”

“Did you stop to think that I wanted to give people that information?”

“I didn't see the harm in it. Besides, if she really is your childhood friend, then she has a right to know, doesn't she?” Bryson shot back.

“Yeah, I think you didn't even communicate with her for a bit, either,” Archer told him.

“Are you both trying to make me feel guilty?”

“Well, someone like you needs to feel guilty sometimes,” Bryson said. Then he shrugged, and pulled up a chair. “But I suppose I should tell you about why I came up to you.”

“Let me guess,” Griffin said. “Your and Miss Cranley's mutual friend invited you to a dinner party.”

“A dinner party?” Archer asked.

“Yes, a dinner party at her house, in fact,” Bryson said, nodding. “And the only reason why you'd know that is if Miss Cranley invited you as well.”

“No way!” Archer exclaimed. “Jack, you got invited to a dinner party?”

Griffin shushed him, and then pointed at the other Lodgers in the common room. Surprisingly, it seemed as if they didn't notice him talking yet. Archer got the hint, and put a hand over his mouth, while Griffin sighed.

“But yes, Christopher, I have been invited to a dinner party at Miss Cranley's house,” he said. “And her invitation stated that I could bring one more guest.” He smirked. “So guess what?”

Archer didn't need much prompting to start looking excited. He started grinning like a maniac, and maybe even squealed a little. Then he put his hands together, collecting himself. “So, uh, you're inviting me. To a fancy party.”

“Miss Cranley is middle class, I don't believe it'll be too fancy.”

“Still,” Archer said. “You're inviting me, huh? I never thought I'd get to be invited to one of those things.”

“Don't get used to it,” Griffin said. “I was surprised to receive something like this, too. I would have thought her father would be the one throwing invitations around.”

“How right you are,” Bryson said. “Dr. Cranley is the sort to invite people over. I've been to one of his parties.”

“So have I,” Griffin said. “His parties are honestly sort of boring.”

“But it'd probably be best if we didn't question it. Miss Cranley wants to invite us, and that's all that matters,” Bryson told him.

“Yeah, how bad could it be?” Archer asked, laughing a bit.

Griffin looked at him, and Archer stopped laughing. He immediately recognized it as Griffin's own look of worry. Could he be remembering the last time they had met Flora? But...that was fine, right?

“So you had better get ready,” Bryson said. “The party is tomorrow night.” He got up from his seat, and then patted Griffin on the shoulder. “You have to be on your best behavior.”

“Don't think I'm a child,” Griffin said. But Bryson only shrugged, and went on his way.

Archer then rested his chin in his hands. “So, now what?' he asked.

Griffin looked at him. “I wouldn't make such a big deal out of it. Flora doesn't bite.”

“Heh, yeah,” Archer agreed. “But what about her helper, Miss...Muriel, was it? Doesn't she hate you?”

“You could tell that much, huh,” Griffin deadpanned.

“Hm, well, other than that, I think it'll be fun,” Archer said. “Who knows, you could meet the other people who Miss Cranley spends time with nowadays.”

Griffin seemed to think about it a little, before nodding. “Well, I suppose you're right,” he said. “Besides, free food.”

That earned one more laugh from Archer. “Can't argue with that!”

* * *

The next night had Griffin wearing whatever formal wear (or at least, as-formal-as-possible-wear) that he could find in his belongings. He waited outside Archer's room, and put his hands in his pockets.

“Looking sharp, Mr. Griffin.”

Griffin looked to his left, and saw Bryson in similar attire. He huffed, and ran a hand through his hair. “Are you expecting me to accept that compliment?” he asked.

“Ah, but you do recognize that it is a compliment,” Bryson said.

“Whatever,” Griffin huffed. He crossed his arms, and then looked away. “Are you going to go with Archer and I to Miss Cranley's house?”

“Only if you want me to,” Bryson replied. “But it seems you and Mr. Archer are the ones who need a vehicle. My friend would be more than happy to let you come with.”

“Is that an offer?”

“Is that a yes?”

Griffin scoffed. He opened his mouth to say something more, but then the door to Archer's room opened. The two of them looked up to see Archer in what was a slightly shoddier attire, and his tie was not tied well either, to say the least.

“...Is that the best you could do?” Griffin asked, unimpressed.

“Hey, don't judge me,” Archer said, miffed. “You grow up in the neighborhood I did and try knowing how to find fancy clothes.”

“The neighborhood you grew up in?” Bryson asked.

Archer shut his mouth. It was as if he hadn't meant to let that much out. Griffin stared at him for a moment, before sighing. “Alright, hold on,” he said, before stepping over in front of him. “Let me fix that.”

He reached forward, and began to re-do the knot of his tie, this time neater. Once done, he smoothed over Archer's jacket lapels as well, and patted his chest. “There,” he said.

“Oh, what would I do without you?” Archer asked.

“You'd just be you, but without me,” Griffin told him.

“Sounds bad to me,” he replied.

“Gentlemen,” Bryson said. “If I'm not mistaken, our ride is waiting for us.”

Archer looked up at him. “Our ride?”

Bryson nodded. “Come along, now. We must hurry so we'll arrive on time.”

He waved them over, and Archer followed after him. Griffin watched for a moment, before sighing. Guess they were following him, after all.

They made their way to the front door, and walked through it. In front of the Society, there was a cab waiting for them. Bryson smiled, and walked over to the person standing in front of the cab; a tall, lean man with greying hair.

“There you are,” the man said to Bryson as they shook hands. “I was beginning to think that maybe you would take a bit.”

“You know me, I'm always punctual,” he replied. Then he gestured to Griffin and Archer. “I was only waiting for these two gentlemen to finish preparing.”

He then turned to them. “Mr. Griffin, Mr. Archer, I'd like you to meet Dr. William Grye. He's a science professor at a certain college, though not without his own scientific contributions.”

When Grye extended his hand to shake, Archer was the first to return the greeting. “Christopher Archer,” he said. “Pleasure to meet you, sir.”

Griffin then put on his polite face and shook Grye's hand as well. “Jack Griffin. It is also nice to meet you, I suppose.”

“Jack Griffin?” Grye asked. “So you must be that childhood friend Miss Cranley talks about.”

“She talks about me?” Griffin raised his eyebrows.

“All good things, of course,” Grye told him. “She did ask me to ask Bryson if he knew you, and I'm glad to meet you now.”

“Uh-huh.” Griffin's eyes darted to the cab. “Should we get in?”

“Oh, of course,” Bryson said. He then went inside, followed by Grye. Griffin moved to get inside, and then turned to Archer.

“Come on,” he said.

Archer nodded, and then came into the cab after Griffin.

* * *

“So, are the Cranleys like fancy, or like _fancy_?” Archer asked. “Because I need to know if I'm going in for something a little...” He trailed off, however, once he saw Grye looking at him. He sat back a little.

“Well, you don't need to worry about her company, or her friends' company for that matter,” Grye said. “None of us care for reputation or things like that.”

“Speaking of caring about that,” Griffin interjected, “is her father going to be there? You know how he is about those social rules, don't you?”

Grye laughed. “You really are a childhood friend of hers,” he said. “I think Dr. Cranley is going to be there, though. He wouldn't want to pass up an opportunity to meet his daughter's friends.”

“Oh.” Archer sank a little. “Does that mean I have to worry?”

“In a manner of speaking...yes.” Bryson said.

“But you're going to be fine, Archer,” Griffin said. “Just act casually and don't panic.”

“Act casually. I assume, like a gentleman would?”

Griffin thought about it a bit. “Think like Dr. Jekyll.”

Bryson laughed this time. “That's one word for it!”

“Dr. Jekyll, huh?” Archer said. “I think I can at least fake his posh accent.”

That earned a few more laughs, before Grye looked out the window. “It looks like we're almost there,” he said. “Any last questions?”

“Yeah,” Griffin said. “Is Flora's helper Muriel Lewis going to be around much?”

“I would assume so. Being at home does not eliminate the occasional need for help,” Grye replied. “Not to mention, she and Miss Cranley are almost like sisters.”

Griffin groaned. “Great,” he said sarcastically.

The carriage pulled up in front of the house.

* * *

The Cranley house in London didn't seem all that different from the house Griffin remembered in their small town. If his memory served, Dr. Cranley always had the rooms in the house arranged a certain way. (It seemed to be an idiosyncrasy of his, rather than any necessity on Flora's part.)

Griffin thought about this as the carriage rolled up to the Cranleys' house, and then stopped. He took a deep breath, and then opened the door, before getting out first.

Archer was the last to get out of the carriage, and Grye paid the fare before the carriage rolled away. But Griffin wasn't focusing on either of those things – he was looking towards the front door of the house. He walked towards it, not being one for waiting idly around for the others.

He heard their footsteps coming up behind him as he used the door knocker, and knocked thrice. It took a moment before someone came to the door, and the door opened to reveal the butler, who looked at him with a surprised face.

“Why, if it isn't Jack Griffin!” the butler said, looking him over. “You've really grown up quite a bit since we all last saw you.”

“The butler recognizes you, even now? How close _are_ you to Miss Cranley?” Archer couldn't help asking.

Griffin glanced at him. “Close enough.” Then he looked back at the butler. “It's good to see you again as well, I suppose,” he said, without a smile. “Has Flora been waiting long?”

“Not so long.” The butler opened the door wider and let them in, nodding at Grye as he went. Griffin assumed that the household knew him as well. Not unreasonable, considering Dr. Cranley's eagerness to make friends.

Speaking of which – Griffin saw a familiar man standing by the staircase. Older than he had remembered, now, but he knew it was Dr. Thompson Cranley, Flora's father. He stopped in his tracks, and Archer stopped as well, but Bryson and Grye came forward and greeted him.

Griffin watched as the three men talked for a little while, before glancing around the room nervously. There were a few reasons why he was feeling a little nervous around Dr. Cranley, but he didn't want to confront them here. Not now.

Unfortunately for him, Bryson waved a hand in his direction, and then Dr. Cranley looked at him, surprise on his face. Fuck.

“Jackson Claude Griffin!” Dr. Cranley exclaimed, walking quickly towards him. “You've come after all these years!”

Archer and Bryson both stifled a laugh. “Your full name is Jackson Claude?!” Archer asked incredulously.

Griffin shushed them, irritably. Then he turned back to Dr. Cranley, putting his hands on his hips. “Why? Did you expect me not to come?”

“It seems your snappish attitude hasn't changed a bit, that's for certain,” Dr. Cranley said. Then he pointed a finger upwards. “You know, I did see the invitations that Flora sent out for the dinner. I was surprised at some of them, but I was most surprised to see your name. Flora hasn't heard from you in years, and suddenly she knows you're in London?”

“She didn't–?” Griffin was about to ask, but then looked over Dr. Cranley's shoulder. For over his shoulder, Grye was using a few gestures to try and get him to, in crude words, shut up. Griffin squinted a little, before realizing what he meant – telling him about Flora's nightly outings might not be the best idea.

But why did Grye know that?

Dr. Cranley looked over his shoulder at Grye, and Grye immediately dropped his hands and pretended to look elsewhere. He stared at him for a little while, before turning back to Griffin. “Anyway. She must have had her sources, and I can respect that. I'm just relieved to see you again after such a long time. You don't know how much your presence here means to Flora.”

“I'm pretty certain I have an idea,” Griffin said.

Dr. Cranley laughed. “Again, you with your comments!” he said. “You really have quite the mouth, Jackson!”

“Jack.”

He heard Archer snicker again. He didn't know how he could last the night like this.

“And you must have brought a friend, per the invitation's instruction,” Dr. Cranley said, looking over to Archer, who immediately stopped, and straightened up. “Who's your friend over here, then?”

“Oh, this is Mr. Christopher Archer,” Griffin said. “Archer, this is Dr. Thompson Cranley, Flora's father.”

“N-Nice to meet you, sir,” Archer told him.

Dr. Cranley raised an eyebrow, but then held out a hand, which Archer shook anyhow. “What do you do, Mr. Archer?”

“Uh, I do...science.” Archer said, releasing the hand. “Yes. Science.”

Griffin rolled his eyes. Archer was nervous this soon?

“He and Griffin are in the same Society that I joined,” Bryson joined in. “You know, the one that Dr. Jekyll heads.”

“The one for mad scientists?” Dr. Cranley asked. He looked at Archer, and then at Griffin. “You're a mad scientist, Jack?”

“I wouldn't say it's exactly mad,” Griffin said.

“He wants to turn things invisible,” Bryson told Dr. Cranley.

“Turn things invisible? That really is a bit outlandish, Jack. You ought to think of your future.”

“Don't say those things as if you're my father.”

“I might as well be.”

Out of the corner of Griffin's eye, Archer was looking a little confused. He huffed. “Well, you're not.”

A silence fell over them for a while. Grye exhaled a bit, before turning towards them. “Well? Shall we meet the other guests?”

“Ah, of course!” Dr. Cranley said. “They're gathered in the sitting room. Flora is there attending to them.”

“Good to know.” Grye waved them over to the sitting room. “Come on, let's meet the others.”

Archer and Bryson followed after him, and Griffin put his hands in his pockets before doing the same. He caught up to Archer, who looked at him.

“What was that all about?” he asked.

“None of your business,” Griffin said automatically.

That stunned Archer. Griffin glanced at him, and sighed. “I can't tell you right now.”

“...Alright.”

Hearing his voice, Griffin felt a little guilty about not being quite honest with him. But what could he do? He didn't want Archer to know. Archer was already having a rough time trying not to be jealous of Flora as it was.

Ah, speaking of which. They reached the sitting room, and indeed, there were a few people gathered there. Only a few. Therefore, Flora was easy to spot, talking to a woman all dressed in purple. But that wasn't the only familiar face he spotted – there was a certain person standing by an armchair, talking to a man with a white streak in his black hair. And Griffin was pretty sure he knew who he was.

“Luckett?!” Griffin asked. “What the devil?”

Luckett started, and then looked up at them. “...Ah,” he said. “What're you doing here.”

“We were invited,” Archer said. “What're _you_ doing here?”

“I was invited too,” Luckett said. “By this fine gentleman right here.”

He gestured to the man sitting in the armchair, who stood up, and put on a friendly smile. Griffin stared at him – he seemed a little familiar, though he couldn't put his finger on it...

“Really?” Bryson asked. “The newest sponsor of the Society invited you to a social gathering he was invited to?”

Oh.

“The newest sponsor? You mean that...government official what's-his-name?” Archer asked.

The man laughed. “What's-his-name is actually named Franklin Porter,” he said, though without hint of annoyance or unhappiness. “Are you all lodgers at the Society?”

“Indeed we are,” Bryson said.

“This is the famous aeronaut, Nicholas D. Bryson,” Luckett introduced. Then he gestured to Archer, and then to Griffin. “And that's Christopher Archer, and Jack Griffin.”

“Jackson Claude Griffin,” Archer corrected.

“Hey!” Griffin hissed.

“What?” Luckett asked. “Jackson Claude Griffin?”

“That doesn't matter right now!” Griffin explained. “What business do you have with Mr. Porter? That's what we'd like to know.”

“Ah–” Luckett paused for a bit, before smiling. “Mr. Porter and I met by chance, and we became friends. That's all there is to it.”

“I see,” Grye said, eyeing Porter. “So, Mr. Porter, this is the person you were speaking of to us?”

Porter nodded, a little quickly. “Yes, ah, this is Mr. Jonathan Luckett. Mr. Luckett, this is Dr. William Grye.”

“How do you do?” Luckett asked Grye as the two of them shook hands.

Bryson, meanwhile, laughed a bit. “Are you sure that's all there is to it? You just being friends?”

“It doesn't matter,” Luckett said, suddenly a little snippy despite keeping his smile on. “I assume, since Dr. Grye knows Mr. Porter, that Dr. Grye is a friend of the hostess, and therefore invited you, Bryson?"

“Ah, a clever deduction,” Bryson said.

“And I know about Griffin's connection to Miss Cranley.” Luckett put his hands in his pockets. “The thing I was surprised about was that Mr. Porter knew her, and wanted to invite me to this party.”

“I was surprised I had the time at all,” Porter added. “Normally I'm busy with, ah, stuffier matters, so spending time with friends was a nice change of pace.”

“Speaking of which, why don't you three introduce yourselves to the women?” Luckett asked. “Miss Cranley will be glad to know you've arrived.”

“Will do,” Archer said, before waving at Luckett, and then he led the others towards the women on the other side of the room.

Griffin now had a chance to look closer at the women whom Flora and Muriel were talking to. The woman dressed in purple was an older woman with a head of bright ginger hair. The other one seemed much younger, and had darker red hair.

He didn't get to observe them for long, though, before the younger woman noticed them, and tapped the older woman on the shoulder. The older woman looked up at them, and so did Muriel, whose face soured as soon as she noticed Griffin among them.

(He sighed internally. Great.)

“Why, if it isn't Dr. Grye!” the older woman said, smiling widely and standing up from her seat. “And Dr. Bryson too, if I recall correctly.”

“Indeed you have,” Bryson said. “It is nice to see you again.”

At the sound of these voices, Flora turned her head upwards as well. “Huh? Dr. Grye and Dr. Bryson are here?”

“Yes, Miss Cranley,” Grye said. “And we've brought Mr. Griffin and his friend Mr. Archer as well.”

“Jack!” Flora said, reaching for her cane and straightening up as well. “Where are you?”

“Right in front of you,” Griffin said, allowing a corner of his mouth to turn upwards.

She came forward, a little quickly, and grinned wider when her hand met his shoulder. She then pulled him into an embrace.

“Oh, thank you for coming, Jack,” she said happily. “I was hoping to meet you again.”

“Did you think I wouldn't come?” Griffin asked, pulling away.

Muriel rolled her eyes. “Well, what with your behavior over the past few years–”

“It doesn't matter,” Flora said, almost instantly. “We can make up for lost time.”

Griffin nodded, a little slowly, as they let go of each other. “Yeah, I suppose so.”

“This is the Jack Griffin you told us about?” the older woman asked, eyeing him carefully. He felt a little annoyed under her gaze. Yet she continued, “He seems just as you say he is.”

Griffin wondered what she meant by that, so he voiced it. “What's that supposed to mean?” he asked.

“It just means that what Miss Cranley said about you was right,” she said. She then extended a hand. “Miss Maxine Conklin. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Jack Griffin.”

Griffin huffed, and didn't return the greeting. “What does Flora say about me?”

“She does say that you had a temper, and were awfully stubborn,” Conklin told him, moving her hand away and putting it on her hip.

“Did she mean it in a bad way?"

“Not at all. I'm amazed at her love for you.”

“M-Miss Conklin!” Flora said, a little embarrassed.

Muriel's eyes were boring into Griffin now. He tried not to notice her. “Love for me? Surely you're exaggerating a little.”

Conklin shook her head. Then she said, “But enough of that. I should introduce you to my daughter, Miss Agatha Hazel.”

“Daughter?” Archer asked, seeming to look over Griffin's shoulder.

At the sound of that, Conklin and the younger woman – Agatha – both giggled a little. “Confused, are you?” Agatha asked. “My mother uses her maiden name, now that my father has died. I've kept his name, though. It's nice to meet you both.”

Griffin grunted. “I suppose I should introduce you to my friend, Mr. Christopher Archer,” he sighed, gesturing to Archer. Archer went and shook their hands more readily than he did.

“Nice to meet you ladies,” Archer said politely.

Agatha chuckled. “Well, it seems you've brought a charming friend,” she told Griffin.

Archer laughed. “Come on, I'm not that charming!”

“Yeah, he's not.” Griffin said flatly.

“Now that stings, Ja–” Archer caught himself, however, and then quickly said, “Griffin.”

Agatha didn't seem to notice it, but Maxine raised her eyebrows at that.

Muriel crossed her arms, and then glanced over the room. “Well, is that everyone?” she asked.

“Are all the guests in the sitting room?” Flora asked. “If I'm not mistaken, we're still waiting on two others – Miss Harper decided not to come...”

Griffin looked at her. “Miss Harper?”

Flora didn't get to elaborate on that, however. People came to the doorway of the sitting room, and Dr. Cranley's voice suddenly came through the room.

“Flora?” he asked.

“Yes, Father?”

“I think the last of your guests finally came!” he said, ushering in two more people. They both had heads of black hair, and one of them – a young man, a little older than Griffin – wore a suit that was as shabby as Archer's, while the other – a young woman – wore a fairly nice blue dress. From their features, Griffin guessed they were related; possibly brother and sister?

“You didn't have to escort us,” the young man said to Dr. Cranley, a little sourly. Yet when he looked at the people in the room, he smiled a little. “Uh...hey. Sorry for being late, Miss Cranley.”

“You're not late at all,” Flora said, seeming to recognize the voice. “In fact, arriving before dinner is served is fairly early, I would say.”

“That's good,” the young woman said, in a soft voice. “I don't know what we would have done if we were really late.”

“Either way, it's good to have you here,” Flora said, coming forward. She then turned around, when she felt she had gotten close enough to these two. “Everyone – well, everyone who hasn't met them yet – I'd like you all to meet Mr. Glenn and Miss Rosie Blackwhit.”

Griffin watched the two of them. Rosie seemed to shrink back from the others' gazes, while Glenn put a hand on his hip. “Yeah, nice to meet you all as well,” he said. “I guess we're going to do individual introductions now?”

“You can do that at your own pace,” Flora said.

“Great,” Glenn nodded, and then he walked forward with Rosie on his arm, towards the women first. They began to strike up a conversation, while Flora walked after them.

Griffin glanced nervously at Dr. Cranley. Pretty soon he was going to have a dinner with everyone, including him...he probably had to do something about the question he knew was coming up soon.

But he couldn't bring it up with Dr. Cranley. Of course he couldn't bring it up with that man. He had to bring it up with Flora, they could refuse that one question together.

So he went up to her, and said, “Hey, Flora.”

“Huh? Jack?” She turned in his direction.

“Yeah. Uh, listen. Can we speak in private?”

She nodded. “Of course.”

He gently took her arm, and was about to lead her to a farther corner of the room, away from Archer's questioning look and Muriel's glares–

–but then the butler came into the sitting room.

“Dinner's served,” he said.

Damn it.


	2. Layers of Discomfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The dinner commences.

So now here the rest of them were, at a long table, getting ready to seat themselves at the table. Griffin was about to choose a seat in the middle of the table, when Dr. Cranley noticed him, and called out to him.

“Jack, why don't you sit closer to us?” he asked, just as he and Flora seated themselves at the front of the table. “We have so much to catch up on, after all!”

Griffin gulped. He was about to refuse, when he felt a nudge from beside him, and he looked to see Archer glancing at him.

“Go on,” Archer said quietly. “You seem to be pretty close to them, after all.”

Griffin frowned. If Archer was telling him to...

“Alright,” he said, sighing. Then he took Archer's hand in his, lacing their fingers together. “But only if you're coming with me.”

Archer looked a little surprised, but also nodded. So the two of them walked towards the front of the table, keeping their joined hands out of sight until they stopped at the front of the table. There, Griffin sat at Flora's right, and Archer sat at his right. Dr. Cranley gave him a look, but decided not to word it. Griffin was a little thankful for that.

Archer sat down, and then looked down at the utensils, which Griffin noticed. There was a relatively smaller number of them compared to more formal dinners, but Archer was confused all the same. Griffin leaned over to him, and whispered in his ear.

“For the utensils, work your way inwards with each course,” he said. “Don't eat until the hostess does.”

Archer glanced at him, surprised. “You couldn't have told me this earlier?”

“You're the one who's too proud to ask for help beforehand,” Griffin said. “Just do as I do and you'll be fine.”

Archer swallowed, and then nodded. “Fine, I guess.”

Once everyone was seated, and the napkins were on their laps, the food was brought out. The servings seemed to be in individual platters – probably a move to imitate the hostess Flora, who had her own platter with the food arranged a certain way, to account for her blindness. The food was placed in front of Griffin and Archer, and Archer looked a little nervous.

As they began to eat, however, Griffin noticed that the nervous mood was not limited to Archer. Some of the others didn't seem all that relaxed while eating, like the Blackwhit siblings. Others, like Conklin, Grye, and Porter, seemed relatively at ease. Dr. Cranley noticed the varied mood, and looked at the others.

“Well, I know how my daughter Flora met Jack,” he said, “and also how she met Dr. Grye, since he was her tutor at one point. But how did Flora meet some of you others?”

“Remember that one meeting I brought Flora to, with other scientists?” Grye said quickly. “They all met her there.”

“All there? Really?” Dr. Cranley asked.

“Really?” Glenn asked.

“Yes,” Grye said. He then glanced at Glenn. “Though you wouldn't remember, Mr. Blackwhit, since you came in later.”

“Really?” Dr. Cranley raised his eyebrows. “Well, I assume you all kept in contact through respectable means, am I right?”

“Yes, yes, very respectable,” Grye said.

Griffin watched, a little bemused. This man seemed eager to keep up the lie that was “Flora doesn't sneak out to pubs”. Though he did wonder why that was.

“Either way, I'm glad you all came here at my invitation,” Flora said.

“Of course, dear, why wouldn't we?” Conklin asked. “It's the least we could do after you asked.”

“I was just worried that some of you wouldn't have time for it,” Flora admitted. Then she perked up. “But most of you came, so that's good. I really appreciate it.”

Griffin wondered if that meant him, or Porter for that matter. Yeah, probably Porter. Besides, they came, and that was what was important.

“And I'm happy that you followed through and invited your own guests, too,” Flora went on. “We can mingle easily with new faces this way.”

“I'll drink to that,” Porter said.

Conklin chuckled. “I think you've attracted a good crowd, then, Miss Cranley.”

Griffin looked at the others, and it seemed to only hit him now that some of these people were the people that Flora had befriended here in London. And she was a scientist too...so were the others...?

“Though I am surprised that you met Mr. Porter, of all people, Flora,” Dr. Cranley said.

“It was simply a chance encounter,” Flora said. “Mr. Porter is an enthusiast of science, much like Dr. Grye is. It seems it was bound to happen.”

“I see,” Dr. Cranley said. “So, a good number of the people here are scientists?”

“Indeed,” Bryson said. “You know about Mr. Griffin, Mr. Archer, and I; Mr. Luckett, who came here with Mr. Porter, is a scientist too.”

“Really?” Dr. Cranley asked, looking interested. “Is he a member of the Society for Arcane Sciences too?”

“That I am,” Luckett said. “I study the detonation of small amounts of chemicals.”

“Sounds interesting,” Dr. Cranley said. Griffin identified it as the tone he used when he tried to keep up interest for the sake of the person he was talking to as well. “What are the practical uses of that?”

“Well, with small amounts of explosives that act just as potent as a larger amount, it would be easier and less expensive to detonate something,” Luckett said.

“Yeah, I bet Dr. Jekyll made you rehearse that over and over again,” Griffin commented.

Luckett chucked. “Well, how would we make our work seem impressive otherwise?”

“Ah yes, I've heard of the work of the illustrious Dr. Jekyll,” Dr. Cranley said. “Trying to make mad science presentable to the public. I suppose you would have an opinion on that, Dr. Grye?”

Grye chuckled, and took a sip from his water goblet. “What I think of his work isn't important. I just think it's good that we have someone fighting the fight with us. As the good Lord once said, 'whoever is not against us is for us'.”

“Very true,” Bryson said.

“Well, what about you, Mr. Archer?” Porter asked. “Dr. Bryson mentioned that you were a scientist too.”

“Mm?” Archer looked up at everyone with a full mouth. “Me?”

“Swallow, Archer,” Griffin said.

Archer did as he was told, and then put a hand to his chest. “My science? Uh...” He looked a little nervous. “I make machines for plants.”

“Machines for plants?” Dr. Cranley asked.

“Why would they need machines?” Agatha asked.

Archer looked down at his food. “Well, I considered that various plants need certain conditions to grow. Machines can help them...uh...machines can help them grow properly, without the need to move them to a new habitat or anything.”

“Sounds interesting,” Porter said, before taking another bite of his food.

“Yeah, his work is incredible,” Griffin said, allowing himself to smile a little. “He made this clockwork tree that makes his lab function like a greenhouse, only it accommodates plants that grow in cool climates as well as hot climates.”

Archer glanced at Griffin, grinning a little wider as well. Griffin could swear he spotted a blush on his face.

“Is that a smile from you, Jack?” Dr. Cranley asked.

At that instant, Griffin's smile vanished, and he looked at him with a sour look on his face. “What's it to you?” he asked.

Flora laughed a bit. “You've always been like this, Jack,” she said. “I sure wish I could see your smile, though.”

“It's nothing special,” he shrugged. He glanced back at Archer, but he was eating again. He shrugged, and then went back to eating.

After a while, they were all done with the first course. Griffin was amazed that he had survived that. They began to serve the next course, and Griffin felt that he could survive that as well. Dr. Cranley hadn't asked the question yet, after all.

* * *

The next meal was passed around, and a few of them began to tuck in right away. Archer seemed to glance in Griffin's direction as he picked the proper spoon to use for the soup, and picked the same spoon for himself.

“Oh, I remember that you're a scientist too, Mr. Griffin,” Grye said. “You turn things invisible?”

Griffin glanced at him. “I try to.”

“Oh, don't be so modest, Griffin, you have your invisible mice,” Luckett said.

“Yeah, and they get all over the place,” Griffin said. “I have trouble catching them as it is.”

“That sounds a little distressing.” Conklin said. “But I'd say invisible mice lean more towards a success than a failure. And I've had my fair share of failures.”

“Really?” Archer asked. “What do you do?”

She smiled. “I'm a parapsychologist. I analyze the supernatural phenomena that come from the human mind.”

“Pardon?”

“I study psychics, hypnotism, telepathy, near death experiences. That sort of thing.”

“Oh.”

“Isn't it kind of futile if you have a lot of failures in that area, though?” Dr. Cranley asked.

Grye cleared his throat. “On the contrary, she's made a lot of breakthroughs in her research, much more than the failures. She just has a lot of trouble getting published.”

“I'm sure she'll be able to share it with the public someday,” Agatha added.

Conklin smiled wider. “I appreciate your kind words,” she said. Then she looked at Griffin. “But back to you – you shouldn't really be modest. Have you turned other things invisible?”

“Well, I've turned paper, cloth, and plants invisible,” Griffin said. “And I'm working on...bigger things.” No need to tell them that he was experimenting on his own cat. “I think I could really make a big discovery with that.”

“Of course you will, Griffin,” Archer said. “Your work is wonderful.”

Griffin couldn't help but smile again. He didn't notice Conklin catching him again, before she glanced at Archer. But he didn't get to catch that, before Dr. Cranley spoke up this time.

“I'm sorry, Jack, but invisibility?” he asked. “What are the practical uses for that?”

He frowned at him. “Can't people use a formula like that for intelligence purposes?” he asked. “It might help the country, as they say.”

“I never thought you'd be the kind of person to care for Queen and country,” Bryson joked.

“Indeed,” Dr. Cranley said. “And what if your ideas fail – how are you going to support my daughter with that?”

Griffin dropped his spoon into the soup bowl.

There it was.

“Support your daughter?” Archer asked.

“Oh, it's a funny story,” Dr. Cranley said. “You see, when Jack was younger, he promised to Flora that he would marry her someday.”

Archer looked surprised. Griffin turned towards Dr. Cranley. “Come on, that was a long time ago. You should know better than to expect me to stick to a promise I made with Flora when we were literal children.”

Flora's face fell, a little, but Griffin noticed it all the same. Nevertheless, he frowned at Dr. Cranley, who looked put off by his sudden words.

“On the contrary, Jack, I think you and Flora can be a fine match once you think about it,” he said. “Besides, Flora has been waiting for you earnestly all these years, and you're going to say no to her?"

“Father...” Flora said. “Jack is right. We made that promise when we were children. He doesn't have any obligation to me now that he and I are both adults.”

If that were true, then why did Flora sound so dejected?

“Flora, I only think that if you had a husband you got along well with–”

“To hell with that!” Griffin exclaimed. “I have another obligation, something I find more important.”

“To what? Your science?” Dr. Cranley asked.

“Someone else,” Griffin said.

Dr. Cranley looked surprised. From her spot behind Flora, Muriel looked at Griffin as well, her face unreadable. Everyone else seemed kind of uncomfortable. But his eyes turned to Flora, and...she looked like a kicked puppy. For lack of better words.

From below the table, a hand went over Griffin's own. He didn't need to look to know whose hand it was.

“Come on, Griffin,” Archer said quietly. “Let's just eat our dinner.”

Griffin looked at him. Archer looked a little stern, but at the same time...kind of hurt.

Why was he hurt?

“Alright,” Griffin said, his face softening. He moved to pick up his spoon again, and ate his soup.

He noticed Dr. Cranley giving him another look.

* * *

The rest of the dinner went on fairly normally, with small talk, science talk, all kinds of talk. Griffin didn't try to join the conversation any more than he needed to, and Archer and Flora both joined in as normally as they could. Which was fine. They needed to get their minds off of what had happened earlier.

Unfortunately for Archer, though, that thought lingered in his mind.

Griffin...had promised to marry Flora?

No, no, he shouldn't think anything of it. Griffin loved him, and that was when he and Flora were younger. Griffin didn't see Flora the same way he did Archer; he said so himself. He had an obligation to someone else, and that was him.

But...what if that obligation ended?

The final course had come and gone, and everyone looked like they couldn't eat another bite. It was then that the staff came in to take away the dishes, and Archer felt pretty satisfied with himself. He didn't screw up (save for that time with the finger bowls...and the main course fork...and the bread...well, it wasn't worth worrying about, right?), so he felt a little confident in that regard.

One of the staff members taking the dishes looked...awfully familiar though. He tilted his head and looked at her. She must have sensed him, because she looked straight at him–

–oh God. He did know her.

He was about to open his mouth, though he didn't know what for, when she quickly went and carried the dishes to the kitchen. He stared after her, a shocked look no doubt on his face.

“I suppose we should rest ourselves for a little while after that meal,” Flora said, though a little automatically. “I think we should take this conversation into other rooms, don't you, Father?”

“I agree,”Dr. Cranley said. “Now then, you ladies can move to the sitting room. We'll finish our conversation here.”

Flora nodded, and Muriel helped her out of her seat. Meanwhile, some of the other men helped the other women out of their own seas, and then with that, the women went on their way to the sitting room.

Archer raised an eyebrow. Was that what people did at these fancy dinners? Maybe he was just used to talking with the female Lodgers even after a meal.

“It appears we are now alone here, then,” Bryson said.

“Indeed,” Grye nodded.

“So...what do we talk about now?” Porter asked.

“Why, pretty much anything,” Dr. Cranley said. “Like that...Blackfog Bazaar that's going on, hm? I heard a good number of you are mad scientists. You must know something about that.”

Was that a leading question? “Uh...” Archer tried to say. “You do know that's full of science contraband, right?”

“Still, a lot of mad scientists have come from all over to see it,” Dr. Cranley said. “Of course, my daughter would never dream of going there. It's far too dangerous for her likes.”

Grye coughed.

“Just because we're called mad scientists doesn't mean we know everything there is to know about Blackfog,” Griffin said. “Besides, how do _you_ know about it?”

“I simply like to know what goes on in London,” Dr. Cranley said. “And Blackfog does have as much science to it as it does magic, right?”

“Yep,” Luckett said.

“However, some of us have never been to Blackfog,” Porter said, crossing his arms. “It is, after all, highly illegal.”

“You only know about it because you want to make sure Flora doesn't go there, Doctor,” Griffin said.

Archer's eyes darted nervously to Dr. Cranley. Oh no.

“And what if that's the case?” Dr. Cranley asked. “I thought you declared yourself not anymore obligated to my daughter.”

“Just because I'm not obligated to her that way doesn't mean I'm not her friend,” Griffin said. “She doesn't need you looking over her shoulder all the time. She can take care of herself just fine.”

“How would you happen to know that, Jack? You _did_ abandon Flora all those years.”

Griffin looked down. Archer guessed that even with his temper and need to prove himself right, he couldn't deny that, not when it came to Flora.

“Ah...” Grye said, “...perhaps we would like to hear about another topic?”

“Yes, of course,” Dr. Cranley said. “Forgive me, I didn't mean to make a scene. How about we instead talk about...”

Archer tuned him out a little. He looked at Griffin, who looked very uncomfortable.

“Are you okay?” Archer asked.

“I'm fine,” Griffin said, almost automatically.

“You sure?”

Griffin paused, before glancing up at him. “What about you?”

“Don't worry about me,” he said. “I just hope he wasn't leading you into talking about anything.”

“Blackfog is always a leading question,” Griffin commented. “He wants to know if Flora is in 'the right company'.”

“Right...” Archer said. He sat straighter in his seat, before thinking a little.

He thought this would be fun. It was kind of stuffy in a funny way, and the food was nice, but...if Griffin and Dr. Cranley were going to stay at each other's throats, then maybe he wasn't having so much fun.

Maybe, in fact...maybe it was time to leave.

Archer leaned over, and looked at Griffin. “Hey, Jack,” he said. “Do you want to leave?”

Griffin nodded almost immediately. “God, please.”

They both nodded, and then Archer cleared his throat, causing the others to look at him. “Excuse us, gentlemen,” he said, imitating Jekyll's posh accent, “but I'm afraid Mr. Griffin and I will be taking our leave.”

Glenn squinted. “What the hell's with that accent?”

“Profanity,” Grye said.

“Yeah, we need to get back early, we have things to do tomorrow,” Griffin said as well. “Science things.”

“Leaving so soon?” Bryson asked. “Well, if you need a ride home...”

“No need, we can go home ourselves,” Archer said.

“Well, alright,” Dr. Cranley said. Archer hoped he didn't get that it was because of the outbursts – or if he did, he found it reasonable for them to leave. Well, luckily, Dr. Cranley said nothing of the sort. He instead said, “If you're going to leave early, then go tell Flora in the sitting room.”

Griffin folded his arms. “Alright. Goodbye to you lot.”

“Goodbye,” Archer said as well, and with that, the two of them got up from the table and went outside the dining room.

They went to the sitting room, where the women were. When Rosie noticed them, she flinched, and the others looked up at them.

“So, uh,” Archer said awkwardly, “Miss Cranley, we'll be taking our leave now.”

“So soon?” Flora asked.

“Yes, it's just a matter of how I'm feeling right now,” Griffin told her. “Don't worry about it.”

“Alright,” she said. “In that case, let me embrace you one more time.”

As Archer learned to expect, Griffin came forward and held her, though not as tightly as she did him. When he did so, she smiled a little wider, and closed her eyes.

“Write to me, Jack,” she said. “You know the address.”

They pulled away. Archer almost thought Griffin was going to say that that was a silly idea. But instead, he said, “You know what? Maybe I will.”

Flora sighed happily. “Thank you.” She then waved a hand. “Goodbye, Jack. Goodbye, Mr. Archer.”

The other women (save for Rosie) said their goodbyes to Griffin and Archer as well, and with that, the two of them were on their way out of the Cranley household.

* * *

Soon, they were sitting in a hansom on their way back to the Society. Griffin was watching the city buildings pass by, while Archer yawned, and leaned on his shoulder. His hand brushed against Griffin's, and they needed no more prompting to hold each other's hands.

“All things considered, that didn't go as bad as it could have,” Archer commented.

“Speak for yourself,” Griffin said. “Dr. Cranley still treats me like a little kid.”

“He's known you since you were a little kid.”

“Still, he's got no right to, now that I'm not.” He sighed. “But I'll admit, it was nice seeing Flora again.”

“And eating free food?”

He chuckled. “And that too.”

Archer chuckled as well, before closing his eyes. “Well, Jack...” he said, “was It nice meeting Flora's friends too?”

“Not really, but I think they're the perfect sort for her. They didn't out her as someone who sneaks out, after all.”

“Always good to have friends like that.”

“...Is something on your mind, Christopher?”

“Maybe.”

“What?”

Archer could have talked about how the thought of Griffin marrying Flora, even if only for a brief while, made him uncomfortable, how he wished Griffin's obligation to him wouldn't have to end.

But he squeezed Griffin's hand tighter, and thought of something else.

“I saw my sister at the Cranleys' household today, Jack.”

Griffin turned to him. “What? Really?”

Archer nodded. “Yeah. She was working as one of the staff.”

“...Christopher,” Griffin said. “I know you're almost as secretive about your past as any other person, but...where do you come from, really?”

“From the slums.” He sighed. “Kind of obvious, given that I was swept off the streets by Jekyll, but...I've lived there my whole life. Never known anything better until the Society. Though that explains what my sister is doing there, I guess.”

“...I see.”

“You're kind of awkward about it, I get it.” Archer looked up at him. “But what I'm really surprised about is how you knew about posh stuff.”

“Oh, that.” A corner of Griffin's mouth turned upwards. “My father was well-off for a time, and I spent a lot of time with the Cranleys.”

“Makes sense.”

“Yeah.”

Archer knew that made sense. He just wished everything else did, too.

But he couldn't voice his feelings about his insecurities. He had already done that once before, and he couldn't afford to do that again.

“I love you, Jack,” he said instead.

“...I love you too, Christopher,” Griffin replied.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More Lodgers content to come!


End file.
